With the first full weekend of the 2019 college football season in the books we have a better understanding of most teams. However, the action in Week 2 will bring further clarity to what’s in store the rest of the way. We followed a few wise guy plays last week and the results were as expected. The sharps hammered Clemson and the Tigers narrowly covered the spread in their win over Georgia Tech.
What we also discovered is that the wise guys aren’t always so smart, which is why offshore sportsbooks are still in business. We tracked some sharp action in favor of Nebraska last week and the Huskers, though they beat South Alabama, struggled to do so. The squares got the better of that game with the Jaguars covering the 35-point closing spread. And you can’t account for in-game injuries when betting. USC was in control of their matchup with Fresno State until JT Daniels tore up his knee. The Bulldogs ended up covering in that one.
Wise guys move the needle on a betting line because sportsbooks take them more seriously than casual bettors. If the public is going one way and the line reacts in a way that makes the public team more attractive, you can bet a wise guy is loading up on the other side. And we’ve seen that take place on the early lines.
We’ll dive into a few wise guy picks for Week 2 of the college football season, and remember BookMaker will have spreads and totals for every FBS contest in the 2019 season. Visit BookMaker.eu when you’re ready to place your bet.
Week 2 Wise guy Picks
New Mexico State at Alabama
John Q. Public likes points and New Mexico State is getting over half a hundy for its matchup with the Tide. Even in a lopsided matchup like this, 54 points on the opening line was too much for a majority of early bettors to pass up. The Aggies aren’t going to win the game, but given Bama’s recent history with large spreads, they are a keen pick to cover. Since 2012, Bama is 0-4 when laying at least 50 points.
We’ve seen Nick Saban call off the dogs early in blowout victories and turn to a more conservative game plan. That’s likely the case in this one and that’s why NMSU was getting over 60 percent of the early action on the line. Despite all that we saw the spread climb a point to Bama -55, which tells me some wise guy is backing the Tide to roll.
LSU at Texas
One of the best matchups on the Week 2 schedule is the first of the season between top-10 teams. LSU and Texas both took care of business last week easily winning against the spread and they face each other in a titanic battle. The Tigers’ new-look offense was on full display against an outmanned Georgia Southern squad, putting up 42 first half points and amassing nearly 500 total yards.
The Horns weren’t as flashy, but they were methodical in taking down La. Tech. This is the biggest game in Austin in a decade and Texas can make a statement with a win. The Horns are getting a majority of the early action as a 4.5-point home dog on the opening line. However, we saw the spread spike a point in favor of the visitors with the help of wise guys. The line for this one will bounce around before kickoff as the action increases, but I do like LSU.
Buffalo at Penn State
Seeing the line move against the public isn’t the only indication that wise guys are playing. Another sign is significant movement, and we saw that for this matchup. With a number of new faces, especially on offense, there were some questions about Penn State entering the season. Those were answered last week in a 79-7 thrashing of Idaho.
Okay, the Vandals aren’t exactly a threat and nobody expected Penn State to have much trouble in this game, but dropping 79 shows how explosive the Nittany Lions are. Buffalo should be a tougher opponent and PSU opened at -24. The Nittany Lions were gobbled up by everyone and the spread climbed to -29.5.
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker.eu.
